# Chapter 1257: Focus on the Imperial Palace
The rolling sound of hooves drew closer, and soon, Lin Feng also saw the fiery red figure atop the warhorse. A trace of surprise flickered in his calm eyes.
"Lin Qian!" Seeing Lin Qian again, Lin Feng couldn't help but recall many things from the past. Once, it was this very young woman who first stirred him to strive forward. In the Lin Clan of those days, Lin Qian had been so dazzling, looking down on him. Moreover, she was on good terms with Dapeng Gongzi, as if standing atop the clouds. But in the end, she was gradually left behind by Lin Feng, bit by bit.
Meeting again today, Lin Qian had actually crossed into the Heavenly Martial Realm as well. Her Heavenly Martial aura was still not very stable, meaning she had probably just stepped into this realm not long ago. Perhaps in his eyes, it meant nothing at all, but for the Lin Clan, producing a Heavenly Martial Realm expert was an absolute, supreme honor.
The warhorse neighed and stopped not far in front of Lin Feng and his group. Lin Qian's gaze instantly fell upon Lin Feng. He was still so carefree and handsome, seemingly as young as before. However, his temperament was clearly different. The Lin Feng of the past had seemed like a hot-blooded, reckless youth, but now, in his clear eyes, there was only calmness and peace. Yet, once those eyes revealed their sharpness, Lin Qian didn't know what kind of gaze it would be.
"Can't see through him!" A faint trace of disappointment welled up in Lin Qian's heart. She had trained desperately, trying to surpass the youth hailed as a myth by Snow Moon. But meeting him again, she found she still couldn't see through Lin Feng. His cultivation now should have reached the mid-stage Heavenly Martial Realm, she thought.
"You know him?" The young man beside Lin Qian turned his head to look at her, asking in a low voice. There seemed to be a hint of displeasure in his eyes. In this tiny Snow Moon Kingdom, a young man had actually appeared with such a grand display, surrounded by beauties like clouds, none of them inferior to Lin Qian beside him.
Just an ant from the Snow Moon Kingdom, how could he be worthy!
"Not close!" Lin Qian uttered a cold voice, her gaze calm. Then, a sneer flashed in the young man's eyes. He flicked his horsewhip, and the warhorse charged forward.
"Get out of the way!" An icy voice spat from the young man's mouth. The whip in his hand transformed into a blurry shadow, lashing out and causing the space to emit a sharp whistling sound, extremely terrifying.
Lin Qian watched coldly as the young man's whip lashed toward Lin Feng and his group. Her face showed no expression, but there was a hint of pleasure in her heart. Perhaps she wanted to use this method to find some comfort. She was still inferior to Lin Feng, but the person beside her was more outstanding than Lin Feng.
Phantom images appeared in the void, crackling loudly, as if a fierce gale had erupted. Many passersby couldn't bear to look, worried that the beautiful women's faces would wither under that whip. The rolling sound of hooves seemed intent on trampling Lin Feng beneath them.
"Chi..." Lin Feng waved his hand, and a sizzling sound rang out. The whip's shadow was severed, and the raging gale dissipated into nothingness.
He took a step forward, and a terrifying sword qi tore through space. The warhorse beneath the young man was ripped apart. The young man himself frowned, a cold light flashing in his eyes. His body soared into the air like a wild bird of prey, lunging toward Lin Feng.
"Courting death!" The young man roared coldly. His palm seemed to carry a metallic silver light, icy cold to the bone.
Lin Feng extended his hand, appearing very slow. Seeing Lin Feng's ordinary-looking palm, the cold light in the young man's eyes intensified, and he directly struck toward Lin Feng's hand.
"Crack!" A crisp sound rang out, accompanied by the young man's miserable scream. His palm was torn apart. Lin Feng's ordinary-looking hand directly clamped onto his throat, suspending his body in midair.
"Ah..." The young man screamed in agony. His torn palm dangled there, his face as pale as paper. His body, suspended in the void, trembled incessantly.
"How dare you touch me!" The young man's eyes held a bloodthirsty look as he stared at Lin Feng. A mere person from the Snow Moon Kingdom actually dared to touch him, to tear apart his palm. At this moment, he seemed to have forgotten the lesson from that attack just now.
Lin Feng said nothing. He simply responded to the other's challenge with action. Gripping the young man's body, he slammed it violently toward the ground. A crashing sound rang out as the ground exploded. The young man spat out another mouthful of blood, his face even paler, devoid of any color. His internal organs were all trembling.
At this moment, Lin Qian's gaze froze as well. Her body trembled slightly. How was this possible? She knew the young man's cultivation—Seventh Layer of Heavenly Martial Realm. How could he be so vulnerable before Lin Feng?
"Lin Feng, stop!" Seeing Lin Feng raise his foot, seemingly about to stomp on the young man's body, Lin Qian shouted urgently.
Lin Feng's foot hung in the void. His indifferent gaze turned to Lin Qian as he asked calmly, "Something?"
"He's not someone you can afford to provoke. If you don't want to implicate your family, stop now." Lin Feng shouted. At this moment, the young man's clan's experts were stationed at the Lin Clan. If something happened to the young man, and since she had come out with him, perhaps the other clan's experts would vent their anger on her.
"Can't afford to provoke?" Lin Feng said indifferently. But then Yi Xue transmitted her voice to Lin Feng: "Young master, he's from one of the three forces pressuring the Imperial Palace. I've seen him before."
Hearing this, Lin Feng's eyes turned cold. His icy gaze shot toward Lin Qian, making her feel as if she had fallen into an ice cellar, bone-chillingly cold. Lin Feng's gaze was so cold.
"If the Lin Clan is involved, don't blame me for not considering that last shred of sentiment!" Lin Feng spat out coldly. Then, under Lin Qian's watchful gaze, he stomped heavily onto the young man's body. A heart-wrenching scream rang out on the street, shocking many into silence.
"Lin Feng, he's the Snow Moon Monarch, Lin Feng!"
"No wonder he has so many beauties by his side. It's Lin Feng. He's back. The Monarch has returned!"
At Lin Qian's shout, everyone now knew who Lin Feng was. Their expressions trembled. Everyone in Yangzhou City knew about the forces pressuring the royal family to relocate. Lin Feng's return at this moment—no one knew how he would react.
"Ah!" The young man discovered that his cultivation had been crippled. His face turned utterly miserable as he stared at Lin Feng, filled with endless venom. For a martial artist at the Eight Wastelands Realm, having no cultivation meant being a cripple, worse than death, lower than a dog or pig. Even in his clan, he would face endless humiliation and contempt. Perhaps he still hadn't realized who Lin Feng was!
"I'll annihilate your entire clan!" The young man roared madly. Becoming a cripple, from now on, life would be worse than death.
"Lin Feng, you'll regret this." Lin Qian's face was also ugly. The young man was crippled. If the other clan vented their anger on her, the consequences would be dire.
"Don't worry about it!" Lin Feng said indifferently. Then, with a slight force from his leg, the young man's body flew out violently, hurtling toward Lin Qian.
Lin Qian caught the young man's body, but Lin Feng looked at her coldly and said, "Scram!"
Hearing that single word "scram," Lin Qian's face turned extremely ugly. Just one word. Meeting Lin Feng again, he still looked down on her from that absolute height, trampling on her dignity.
Except for the time in their youth when she had once looked down on Lin Feng, ever since he rose to prominence, she had always seemed so insignificant by his side.
"Dong!" The sound of hooves rolled. Lin Qian rode past Lin Feng, coldly leaving behind a single sentence: "You will definitely regret this!"
Lin Feng paid no attention to Lin Qian's words. Since he knew that young man was from one of the three forces, he naturally had to deal with him.
Looking at the beautiful women beside him, Lin Feng smiled apologetically. "Looks like we'll have to stop here for today."
"How annoying!" Xiao Ya said somewhat dejectedly. The group began heading back to the Imperial Palace.
"Monarch Lin Feng has returned."
"Let's go to the Imperial Palace and see. Any one of those three foreign forces is extremely terrifying. Now that Monarch Lin Feng has offended one of them, he'll probably face a brutal retaliation. Will the Monarch have to hide within the formation?"
Watching Lin Feng leave, the atmosphere in this space was completely ignited. Countless footsteps headed toward the Imperial Palace. Their Snow Moon myth, the all-powerful Monarch, was now facing terrifying forces with legendary Venerables. How would he deal with this?
After Lin Qian returned to the Lin Clan residence, the force stationed there learned that the young man had been crippled by someone from the Imperial Palace. Soon, figures streamed out of the Lin Clan, advancing toward the Imperial Palace in a mighty procession.
After they left, the Lin Clan members learned that the one who had crippled the young man's cultivation was actually Lin Feng. Their emotions became incredibly complex. Last time, Lin Feng had returned in a shocking manner, riding through Yangzhou City. Many in the Lin Clan had hoped Lin Feng would return to the Lin Clan and revitalize it. However, the Lin Clan had only shown Lin Feng and his father coldness and humiliation in the past. How could Lin Feng possibly agree? When you were down, they trampled on you endlessly; when you were glorious, why would you return? Now, hearing news of Lin Feng again, the Lin Clan members' complex emotions were mixed with shock. Lin Feng was still so powerful that they could only look up to him. But this time, he was probably in trouble.
Soon after, the Lin Clan crowd also left the Lin residence, heading toward the Imperial Palace.
Yangzhou City was too small in the eyes of Venerables. This commotion couldn't be hidden from the other two powerful forces. Soon, having received the news, they also left their encampments and rushed to the Imperial Palace. They couldn't wait two more days. They would act early and make those in the Imperial Palace get out. A mere Snow Moon Kingdom, an ant-like nation—what could they use to resist? If they were told to get out, they should obediently get out. Otherwise... kill!
On this day, the eyes of Yangzhou City were all focused on the Imperial Palace!
PS: From now until 8 AM the day after tomorrow, 2 days' time. If flowers reach 1200, there will be an 8-chapter burst that day; at 1250, 10 chapters; at 1300, 12 chapters. Begging for punishment! Thanks to Diao Erlang for tipping 100 Zhulang coins for the work; Ling Wu Hun for tipping 100 Zhulang coins; cmx3288 for tipping 588 Zhulang coins!